Asus ESC 1000 Should Have Been Branded Eee SuperPC :-)
Interesting item from GoodGearGuide.com...
Asustek teams with Nvidia on 1.1 Teraflop supercomputer
The desktop PC sized supercompter features 960 Nvidia graphic cores with 24GB of DDR3 DRAM. At an estimated US$14,519 this is a very affordable supercomputer.
I think Asus should brand is as the Eee SuperPC 
Costco HP Inkjet Cartridge Refill Service: Big Savings Gets a Thumbs Up
I went to Costco earlier this week to buy new HP 56 inkjet cartridges. As usual, I was staggered by the price of a few ounces of ink. And, the package at Costco was a tri-pack. I really didn't want to buy three black ink cartridges because the printer isn't used that heavily. Then, I noticed a sign nearby saying that Costco has an inkjet cartridge refill service for HP and one or two other popular brands.
So, I returned today (Oct. 24) with a nearly empty HP 56 cartridge, walked over to the photo processing area and asked how to use the ink cartridge refill service. The Costco person handed me a 1 Hour Photo envelope. I was told to fill out my contact info and to write in the cartridge name (HP 56) in the "Special Instructions" box on the front of the envelope. The person then told me it would take about an hour and handed me the top receipt from the photo development envelope. I returned a bit over an hour later and paid $7.99 plus a local excise tax (total was $8.37).
I was handed the refilled ink cartridge and a small strip of paper with, presumably, a sample printout from newly refilled cartridge. After returning home, I placed the refilled HP 56 in an aging but functional HP 56 printer, turned it on, and placed the HP 56 back in the printer.
The printer complained that the cartridge only had 10% of fluid left. However, that is to be expected since it is unlikely anyone but HP has access to the information to reset whatever ink level sensor technology is used. I printed a couple of sample test pages to see what the output looks like and am happy to report that everything looks fine. I'm very satisfied with the refilled cartridge and Costco's service so far.
Costco.com lists a single HP 56 cartridge selling for $21.25 (plus shipping). So, the refill service is essentially 62% cheaper. That is quite a savings.
The sign about the service says that refill service for the HP 02 cartridges are coming soon. I'm looking forward to that since that ink system consists of 6 cartridges (5 color and 1 black). Certain colors burn through fast (yellow and magenta for me) and cost about $11 each for the color cartridges.
Windows 7 Compatible Multitouch Devices List
Microsoft On10.net has a list of all current multitouch devices compatible with Windows 7...
Where the Multitouch Devices Are
Most are tablet, netbook, notebook, and all-in-one desktop computers. However, there are also touch capable monitors including a 42-inch behemoth from HP.
The list includes the Asus Eee PC T91. However, my understanding is that this model is a single touch device. The T91A (not released yet) is the multi-touch model. I tried to post a comment on the On10 blog. However, it requires a sign-in and did not have a way to create an account. Why doesn't this Microsoft site use Passport?
Costco HP Ink Refill Service
I noticed Costco has a new HP ink cartridge refill service. An HP 56 (black) refill was listed as $8.95. They say it takes about an hour to get the refilled cartridge back to you. I plan to try it out later this week.
Connectland USB Desk Fan
One of the problems of working in an office with a lot of computers is that they generate a lot of heat. I've found that typical office central air conditioning systems simply aren't designed to siphon off the hot air generated by computers fast enough. I've had a small USB fan/light combo for a while now and decided to look for something slightly bigger to push a bit more air in my direction. The Connectland USB desk fan just arrived yesterday ($13 from Amazon with free shipping).
The fan stands a mere 7 inches tall. And, as you can see from the photos, it is powered by plugging it into a USB port. I just unpacked it and tested it out. It is not exactly silent. But, it is quiet enough for my needs. It pushes out enough air for my needs. And, unlike the USB fan I'm using now, it can rotate on its base.
I'm apparently the first person to give it a rating on Amazon.com. And, I gave it 4 out of 5 stars ("I like it").
Finished Dan Brown’s “The Lost Symbol” (audiobook): Predictable But Entertaining Thriller
I finished "reading" (listening) to Dan Brown's latest thriller The Lost Symbol yesterday. Most of my "reading" was done while driving the car commuting to work. Would have never finished the book this quickly (less than 2 weeks) if I had to carve out time to actually sit down and read it.
NO SPOILERS
The audio book is nearly 18 hours long. And, every minute except for the last chapter is fast paced, entertaining, and even educational now and then (who knew that the word "sincere" had such an interesting etymology?).
If you pay attention and are familiar with Brown's writing style and the genre of hybrd techno-thriller conspiracy-theory historical-myth type stories, you can probably figure out the plot twists quite a bit ahead of their reveals. But, while some reviewers criticized the book's predictability, I think this is what makes it fun for those of us that aren't multi-cultural historical detectives (pretty much everybody). There's a kind of "yay, me!" feeling when you find that you correctly figured out a plot twist before it is actually revealed.
There are actually a couple of "endings" to the book. I enjoyed everything except for the final chapter.
MINOR POTENTIAL SPOILER ALERT
The last chapter is a pseudo-philosophical sermon of sorts. It could have been summed up in a couple of sentences. I suspect the movie version, if there is one, will do just that.
I think I got my money's worth for this book. Now, I need to find something else on Audible to read. I tried listening a bit more to Lucifer's Hammer. But, after many hours of listening (about 8 so far), it is still a trashy soap opera story so far with no character who has caught my interest.
The "Flashforward" book perhaps? The new TV show based on the book had an entertaining first episode.
Microsoft KB974332: Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Application Compatibility Update
Booted my Windows 7 64-bit Edition PC for the first time in a week and noticed a single update available titled:
Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Application Compatibility Update
You can find its description in: KB974332
This compatibility update says it fixes issues for Alcohol 52%, Altiris and Symantec Virtual Software up to version 6.1.499, ZoomText version 9.18, Dell Printer Driver (Models-V105, V305 and V505), Trend Micro Internet Security 2007/2008/2009, Trend Micro VirusBuster 2008 , YiDongFeiXin version 2.2.x and version 3.5.x, PGP Desktop up to version 9.x and Microsoft's own Windows Live Photo Gallery.
“The Lost Symbol” very entertaining so far: Audiobook-Thriller-In Progress
Unless you've been hiding behind a news black curtain, you've probably heard or read that Dan Brown's latest novel, The Lost Symbol, was released last week. This is the third novel based around the Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon character (Angels & Demons, The Da Vinci Code).
I'm listening to the 17 hour 51 minute long Audible audiobook version and am around the 10 mark right now. If you enjoyed the previous two books with Langon in it, you'll probably find this one entertaining. I know I am so far. Special credit should go to the audiobook reader, Paul Michael, who does an excellent job voicing the various characters in the book.
The book hits the ground running and doesn't really pause much in the 10 hours I've listened to so far. It has a 3 star average rating on Amazon and a 3.45 star rating on Audible (only 20 ratings there right now). I'll give it a provisional 4 star rating based on what I've read/heard so far. It has been a great change of pace from the slow development in the Lucifer's Hammer audiobook I have invested 7 hours of listening to so far (and then paused to switch to The Lost Symbol).
“Lucifer’s Hammer” boring so far: Audiobook-SF-In Progress
Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle is, I've read, considered a classic novel in the SF global disaster genre. I've read a number of Niven's other novels (mostly in the Protector/Ringworld series). And, although I've never read Pournelle's novels, I was a huge fan of his old Byte magazine Chaos Manor tech column. So, I figured the 24 hour 32 minute long audiobook version would be a treat. After all, the hardcopy novel has a 4 star rating on Amazon and a 4.5 star rating on Audible.
This isn't the case, in my opinion, so far though. I'm about 7 hours into the Audible version of the audio book right now. And, it has just been a mish-mash of uninteresting soap opera character stories so far. I have yet to care about any of the characters so far. The operative word at this ~7 hour point is "Boring".
I'm hoping that it "gets good" soon. In fact, I'm so hopeful, that I'm not going to give up on the book. However, it is so boring at this point, that I'm taking a break and listening to something else for a while (Dan Brown's "The Lost Symbol"). More on this next...
New Topic eBook & Audio Book Commentary
For the past 10 to 15 years the only time I've spend reading novels has been on long flights. Some books needed a couple of flights to complete because despite the length of most of my flights (5+ hours), I didn't spend all of that time reading (movies, music, etc.).
However, a couple of things changed this year that has let me actually get through a few novels (or have them in-progress). First, Amazon introduced their free Kindle for iPhone app. I still can't bring myself to spend hundreds of dollars for an actual Kindle. But, I've found that reading ebooks on an iPhone or iPod touch is just fine for me. In fact, I've finished two novels that way and am working my way through a third right now.
The second thing that changed is that after years with a lapsed Audible account, I signed up for a full year (credits are cheaper that way). And, I'm listening to novels now during daily commutes or just doing stuff around the home.
So, I decided to add ebook/audio-book reviews to the mix on this blog. The first two will be what I call in-progress commentary because, well, because I can. Real book reviewers have to finish book before they can comment on them. But, this is a blog. And, since people talk about books with their friends while they're still reading them, I figure I can blog about books while in-progress too.